For the Love of Kids and Community

At Weston, we have deep Vermont roots that date back to our early days as a community theatre. That connection, with our neighbors and friends, is a big part of who we are as a company. Our Education and Outreach Programs are one way we’re able to stay in touch and give back.

Thanks to dedicated staff and countless supporting organizations, we get to share the joy of live performance and the creative arts with students and teachers each season.

At the close of this summer’s run, we wanted to take a moment to say thanks to Susan Haefner, who capably and beautifully executed the role of Interim Education and Outreach Coordinator through the year. Sue nurtured the fabulous programs developed by her predecessor, Jacki Brown, and added a few events of her own. In 2015, we welcomed new student visitors, a new class of ambassadors, the inaugural Broadway Bootcamp, and a successful run of student matinees; highlights here on the blog:

PlayDate at the Playhouse. A free family event on the green in Weston included games, contests, and refreshments. Plus, performances by area elementary students on the Playhouse stage. PlayDate is an opportunity to get littles comfortable on campus, to bring parents and kids together in our creative space, and to coordinate with local elementary and pre-k groups to share the summer family programming. So much fun!

Quest Camp. For six consecutive Wednesdays this summer, Sue coordinated interactive theatre workshops for Ludlow’s Quest Summer Camp participants. Campers were exposed to all areas of theatre through games, improv, and creative play, and they attended technical rehearsals and two MainStage shows. Was a blast!

Quest was new. And Broadway Theatre Camp was new, too! Produced in collaboration with Burr and Burton Academy’s Creative Arts Department, high school musical theatre students worked on material from Guys and Dolls and golden age musicals with Weston teaching artists for three weeks, culminating in their own performance on the Weston stage. Exit poll says students AND parents were thrilled with the experience, and so we look forward to BTC 2016 with much enthusiasm!

September School Matinees brought our spring teacher’s workshop attendees back to campus with their students. In all we welcomed over twenty different schools and hundreds of kids to see The Glass Menagerie. A killer cast, beautifully directed, it was a seriously good way to experience the classic work!

And for those of you who are catching up, Piper Goodeve joined us last October as our new Director of Education. She first came to Weston as an intern in 1998, was part of the inaugural Young Company in 2000, and joined Actors’ Equity playing Ado Annie in the 2002 production of Oklahoma!. Other Weston credits include The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and The Marvelous Wonderettes. Off Broadway, Piper played Anne in Anne of Green Gables, earning a Drama League Award nomination for Distinguished Performance, and has performed at Syracuse Stage, McCarter Theatre, Hangar Theatre, Tennessee Shakespeare Co, Trinity, and Merrimack Rep.

Now, with ten years of teaching experience, including work with the Hangar Theatre Next Generation, The Studio New Canaan, and the high school Summer Shakespeare Program at the McCarter, Goodeve’s joined our team — yay! If you’re interested in learning about any of Weston’s education programs, or you just want to say hello and welcome, you can reach Piper viaemail.

Check back with us for details about “Weston 101,” Vermont Young Playwrights, Teachers Workshops, and more as they are confirmed.